Description

In 1899, at the age of fifty-six, Josephine Jefferson Foard moved from the East Coast to Laguna Pueblo in New Mexico, where she built her own house and a kiln for firing pottery. Her intent was to show Pueblo potters how to strengthen their pottery by using better firing methods and by glazing it on the interior to make it waterproof. She also aimed to assist potters by marketing their products in the East, not just as decorative items but as functional additions to Anglo households. Through collecting and studying historic pueblo pottery and with access to Foard's correspondence with family and the Commissioners of Indian Affairs, the authors of this book provide a rare glimpse into the life of a remarkable woman who ventured to the Southwest as an artist, potter, and entrepreneur. Foard's letters, included in the appendices, describe at length her experience at Laguna Pueblo and offer insights into her life and work and also the lives of people of Laguna Pueblo and others in New Mexico.

About Author

Dwight P. Lanmon is director emeritus of the Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum, Winterthur, Delaware. He is retired director of the Corning Museum of Glass, Corning, New York, fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, London, and research associate at the Indian Arts Research Center, School for Advanced Research, and the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Lorraine Welling Lanmon is a retired professor of art history specializing in American art and architectural history. She served as consultant for the Institute of Architecture and Urban Studies in New York City and the Elmira Center for Mark Twain Studies at Quarry Farm. She is the author of William Lescaze, Architect, which received the Philadelphia Art Alliance Press Award. Dominique Coulet du Gard is a social science faculty member at Whatcom Community College and Western Washington University, Bellingham, and past administrative curator with the State of Delaware. She is the author of The Bibliography of the Arts of Africa.